THIS year marks the second time the movement control order (MCO) has hit the Aidilfitri celebration, causing festivities to be mellowed and strictly confined to the individual Muslim households observing.
Sadly, there will still be no forms of salam raya (tradition of seeking forgiveness), ziarah-menziarahi (open house visits), and all the things that make Hari Raya worthwhile and special. Not at least until the national vaccination plan has fully rolled-out.
While enjoying a feast with extended family and having our homes filled with the sound of young ones playing seems like a dream, there is no stopping us from making precious memories safely within the comforts of our homes.
The Vibes reached out to some notable personalities to find out just how they are basking in the simplicity of this year's celebration.
Celebrity chef, Zaleha Kadir Olpin a.k.a. ‘That Rendang Lady’
You may know of Zaleha from a certain reality TV show when the nation (in true Malaysian style) gathered to show support by roasting judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace for wanting the Bristol-based chicken rendang to be crispy.
Similarly like in Malaysia, in the UK there is an urge to keep celebrations at home with family following social distancing guidelines.
“It is better to stay safe,” says the Kuantan-born chef.
“I’ll be cooking all our favourite Raya treats, which is a mixture of foods based on my family’s various cultural backgrounds.
“We have putu mayam, ayam masak merah, Sodhi (a type of Sri Lankan curry) and of course, no Raya is complete without ketupat and rendang,” she shares when reached out via social media.
“One dish that is hard to get in the UK is proper lemang.”
With an Indian heritage mixed with Malay, “… and then got the British side thrown in as well”, Zaleha shares what she values most in a mixed-heritage background: “I think the picking and mixing of traditions from various parts of each culture to form our own sort of ‘family culture’.
“For instance, being able to introduce our culture and customs to different family members is also fun, especially when it comes to food.
“I have a very big family back home. My late parents had eight children, and from there, more than 40 grandchildren (to date), plus 15 great-grandchildren,” she shared, noting that her family keeps in touch via WhatsApp video calls and FaceTime.
“Raya in the UK is all about taking turns to host gatherings, kinda like Malaysian open houses. We each bring a potluck dish and celebrate together. But this year will be just me, my hubby and my youngest daughter,” she added.
“We are recycling our baju Raya this year so our colour choice would either be lilac or blue, depending on what our little diva wants to wear.”
Noting that her favourite Raya song is the classic ‘Balik Kampung’ by Sudirman, Zaleha notes on some activities to keep the family company during the celebration: “Since lockdown, we have purchased about 12 boxes of puzzles.
“We started off at 50 pieces puzzle sets and now we are doing 3000 pieces puzzles. It is quite a headache but a good way to spend time with the family because everyone chips in on the effort.
“I would like to wish my family and friends (here and abroad) a Selamat Hari Raya and stay safe everyone.”
Radio announcer, Aishah Sinclair
“Initially my plan for Hari Raya was to go to my mother-in-law’s house. She stays just five minutes from us, and we were just going to visit and makan all the good food,” shares the Mix.fm radio deejay.
“Since we were unable to cross districts, I already knew I was not able to go see my parents because they live in Shah Alam. The plan was to jump on Zoom (call).
“But with this whole new MCO 3.0 ruling, it looks like we are all definitely going to ‘beraya’ via Zoom in our Baju Raya,” she added.
Aishah does note that her mother in-law will still be cooking the Raya food for the family, “... but what we are going to do is just drive-by and pick-up the food.
Sharing how it is like having to tell her kids that there will be no celebrations again this year, “They don’t have many expectations, and I guess it is due to how this whole year has turned out.
“They are so used to staying at home and not having much of a social life. They were a bit disappointed nonetheless that we were not able to see my mom.
“Likewise, I was feeling a bit down too after the MCO announcement. My mom particularly was even slightly hopeful that we could visit, and it is just heart-breaking to tell her no – that the celebration will only be between her and my dad.
“There is no option, I mean we have to stay put right?”
Hip-hop artist and rapper, Kayda Aziz
Sharing with us on her preparations for Raya so far, Kayda highlights that not much was done other than “… preparing some home cooked rendang and kuah kacang just for myself, my parents together with my siblings to eat for lunch on the first day of the celebration this year.
“We used to visit at least four to five houses on the first day, but last year we did a group Zoom call with my family members on my mom’s side. So, we are planning to do the same this year.
“However, it will be different this year as it is the first Raya without my maternal grandmother. She passed away last August,” she disclosed.
When asked what she would rather be doing if it were not for Covid: “Looking forward to seeing my cousins and inviting all my friends to celebrate Raya at my house."
On the family activities that she has found herself loving doing lately: “I have been catching up on my Netflix series and my family members usually join me in the living room.
“We have also been having many quality conversations during iftar and sahur,” noted Kayda.
Other than the private heart-to-hearts, the musician has another shared interest done together as a family collective. It is through the food business called Selera Jasamas, which supplies delicious Daging Dendeng, thinly sliced dried meat typical of Indonesian cuisine.
“I started selling the dendengs to my friends and family at first. We also supplied it at one restaurant about six years ago.
“My mom and brother began to see that there was a potential in the product, and naturally they joined me and helped to rebrand our business,” she said.
Kayda’s rendition of the all-time favourite dish among Asian foodies is carefully homecooked, “using my maternal grandmother and mak long’s recipe”.
The next time you place an order, you might get Kayda’s mother, Malaysia’s very own jazz songstress Datuk Sheila Majid, to cook and prepare your order.
“You can DM us on Instagram at @selerajasamas. Let us know your address, and we will get our agents to sort out the deliveries,” she said.
“I have no specific Raya dish that I miss having, but if I need to point out one, I think it’s quite hard to find good honey cornflakes cookies,” she added.
Comedian, Harith Iskander
The whole concept of working from home, or at least observing anything from home, is part of the new normal and Harith agrees.
The comedian notes, “It’s been over a year since our movements are restricted, so the latest announcement did not really come as a surprise. A slight nuisance, yes, but totally understandable given the hike in positive cases.
“Since it has been announced that there will be no ‘visiting’ and any sort of plans to host or visit open houses, Raya will be understated again this year. However, we have matched our attires (Baju Melayu and Kurungs) for Instagram photos anyway,” shared Harith via Whatsapp.
Highlighting on some traditions created with the fambam to celebrate Raya that is different to when he grew up, “The Instagram photos with tens if not hundreds of shots taken is definitely new”.
“Back in my childhood, we only took one or two shots at most because you did not want to waste film. Other than that, the maaf-maafan, sparklers and oil-lamps remain a staple,” he added.
On a more serious note, Harith’s NGO, The Hope Branch, “… will be on the ground over Raya bringing food and goodies to underprivileged families in Ampang.
“We also conduct ongoing food distribution to the homeless in KL city centre, which has been a continuous activity done every year,” he added. – The Vibes, May 13, 2021
